TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Jakarta Governor Joko Widodo is slated to deliver a speech at the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P)’s National Work Meeting that kicks off today. The governor will deliver his speech after PDI-P chair Megawati Soekarnoputri’s.
Eva Kusuma Sundari, member of PDI-P’s Jakarta central executive council (DPP) and the meeting’s committee, said Jokowi would deliver his speech in his capacity as the party’s cadre and governor of the capital. “He is the ruler of Jakarta, our best cadre, that’s it,” Eva said on Friday, September 6, 2013.
Eva explained the meeting, scheduled to commence at 2 p.m., will not discuss much on the party’s preparations for the presidential election, but rather focus on priming their cadres to face the legislative elections in April 2014.
However, Eva said chances remained open to the party’s cadres from regions to voice their aspirations regarding the criteria for the party’s presidential candidate in the upcoming presidential race. She said PDI-P chief would weigh the proposed criteria in naming the party’s presidential hopeful. But Eva said the nomination of the presidential candidate would not be announced in the meeting.
“The focus is on the legislative elections. As for the presidential candidate, we only talk about the criteria,” she said.
Prior to the meeting, a number of cadres from the party’s regional branches had begun airing their support for Jokowi to run for president—with declarations of support taking place in East Java, Central Java, and West Sumatera.
PDI-P central officials have yet to comment on the governor’s possible candidacy. They said they had given the mandate to name the party’s presidential candidate to PDI-P chair Megawati Soekarnoputri, according to results of the party’s 2010 national meeting in Bali.
IRA GUSLINA SUFA
